Graffiti Artist Arrested At His Own Art Exhibit

Graffiti artist Jason Williams, also known as Revok, was arrested at an exhibition of his work at a Mid-City gallery and graffiti-art store Sunday, authorities announced.

The 32-year-old, described as a prolific tagger whose moniker has been spotted throughout the region, was nabbed at the 33thirdshop at 5111 West Pico Blvd. by the Special Problems Team the California Highway Patrol and the Los Angeles Police Department’s graffiti team.

“A probation search of his residence was conducted and several hundred paint cans, spray tips, a fire extinguisher and other implements were found,” states a sheriff’s department release. “In addition to the above, he had a replica LAPD badge, a stolen ‘detour’ sign and digital photos of his graffiti work on his phone.”

Williams was arrested on suspicion of possessing vandalism tools, possessing a counterfeit badge and receiving stolen property. Authorities say he was on probation at the time of the arrest.

Deputies stated that Williams was the star of the Montana Paints-sponsored art show (a flier for the event actually shows Revok as one of many artists) and that he was paid $1,000 to attend. They say he makes money from t-shirt sales and prints and that he was featured in a segment on KABC7 news in recent months.